


Second Star To The Right

by thequidditchpitch_archivist



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Drabble
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-03-13
Updated: 2007-03-13
Packaged: 2018-10-26 10:39:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10785159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thequidditchpitch_archivist/pseuds/thequidditchpitch_archivist
Summary: Charlie Weasley, tugging on heart strings





	Second Star To The Right

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Annie, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Quidditch Pitch](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Quidditch_Pitch), which went offline in 2015 when the hosting expired, at a time I was not able to renew it. I contacted Open Doors, hoping to preserve the archive using an old backup, and began importing these works as an Open Doors-approved project in April 2017. Open Doors e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Quidditch Pitch collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thequidditchpitch/profile).

Neville Hagrid had listed Polydor as "A Norwegian Ridgeback, shows signs of once having worn a saddle. Age: Old.” That was in the initial census of the Romanian National Dragon preserve, three hundred years ago.

Two weeks ago Charlie Weasley had listed the dragon as "Very Old"

Today the distinguished friendly old mascot of the Keepers camp was dead.

Jimmy Francis the Camp's dragon healer had harvested the heart. An unpleasant process, but the official supply of dragon heart strings quelled poaching activity. Not that the dragons needed much protection, but the Dragon Keepers felt that cleaning up poacher's bodies was not in their job description. The dragons, hating the taste of human flesh always left bodies, sometimes charred, but almost always complete.

"Jimmy!" Charlie caught the old man's arm.

"How do I get one of those?"

Jimmy paused and glanced down at the wand in Charlie's hand

"What for."

Charlie grinned. 

Not the grin that won over bar maids but the grin that usually (sometimes, occasionally) won over his mother.

"I'm not a Unicorn hair kinda guy Jim."

Jimmy glanced now at Charlie's battered wand again

“That looks a bit worn out Weasley, even for you.”

"Wasn't new when I got it."

Charlie then reached into his pocket extracting a wand of polished wood.

"Pretty." The older man admitted. "Yellowwood?"

"Of course" It was the wood for working dragons. "Needs a core."

Jimmy nodded. "Alright." He said. "There's paperwork."

"And I need a release from Olivander's"

"Hey Chatterboxes!"

"Move back. It's time to send this old brute off."

Jimmy and Charlie moved out into the circle of keepers surrounding the old dragon. 

Normally only one or two keepers would do this but this was Polydor. No one knew how old he was, a thousand years old perhaps? He had been quite possibly the oldest dragon in the world.

Charlie was convinced that once centuries ago he had been ridden

"Ready boys."

A staggered chorus of assent rang around the circle.

"ASTRO POLYDOR"

No dragon in their care was ever left to the scavengers.

"ASTRO POLYDOR."

No keeper worth his salt would allow that.

"ASTRO POLYDOR."

With a final flick of their wands the keepers sent the oldest Dragon in the world into the stars.

Fin


End file.
